Preparing Your Incident Command Post IT: A Checklist for Wildland Fires

A practical IT and communications checklist for setting up wildland fire incident command posts — from network infrastructure to satellite connectivity.

Wildfire Communications July 2024

Standing up an ICP quickly and correctly is a mission-critical skill in wildland fire response. The communications and IT infrastructure enables every other function — logistics, operations, finance, and public information. Here's the checklist we use.

Pre-Season Preparation

Inventory and test all communications equipment
Update firmware on all networking gear
Verify Starlink dish and subscription are current
Test bonding VPS and multi-WAN failover configurations
Confirm LTE data plan allocations and carrier coverage maps
Verify satellite VSAT dish alignment and subscription

Arrival on Scene — First 2 Hours

Establish primary internet connectivity (Starlink or VSAT)
Bring up bonding/aggregation for multi-WAN performance
Configure core switch and VLAN segmentation
Deploy WiFi access points for Operations, Finance, and Logistics
Establish VoIP phone system and confirm PSAP connections
Test radio interoperability links

Documentation and Security

Document all IP addressing in the ICS 213 or equivalent form
Change default credentials on all network equipment
Set up basic network monitoring
Create network diagram for incoming IT/comms unit personnel

The first Communications Unit Leader on scene sets the tone for the entire incident's IT infrastructure. A well-built initial setup is much easier to hand off than one that was cobbled together under pressure.

ICP Communications Packages

Richesin Engineering builds and deploys turn-key ICP communications packages for wildland fire and disaster response.

Questions about this topic? Contact our engineering team for a free consultation.